Saturday, December 31, 2011

Friday, December 30, 2011

You've probably heard the rumors that presidential candidate and '90s Trivial Pursuit answer Newt Gingrich divorced his first wife while she was being treated for cancer, then dumped Mrs. Gingrich #2 for his current wife Callista. To dispel the notion that he's a serial cheater and all-around terrible person, Gingrich has dispatched his daughter Jackie Gingrich Cushman on the campaign trail to "set the record straight" about her father. The problem is, newly uncovered legal documents show the nasty rumors are at least partly true. Add another check to the "horrible monster" column.

Just more evidence of Newt's trouble with the truth. You know, "it depends on what the definition of is is ..." He's a historian, not a lobbyist. He has an unfortunately pattern of dumping his wives when they become ill. Fortunately he's asked for God's forgiveness, unfortunately he should have asked that of his ex wives.

In a study published in the latest issue of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, psychobiologist Bill Hopkins and his colleagues report that poo-flinging (and any-other-object-flinging) is, in fact, a sign of high-order brain development. The researchers report that chimps who threw more and with greater accuracy had more developed motor cortices and significantly better communication abilities than inaccurate, non-flingers.

Well it appears that Newt has become the Republican flavor of the month. This status is a double edged sword. Being the front runner means increased scrutiny, and Mitt has plenty in his past to keep the tabloids going for weeks. I only wonder how long he'll stay on top.

Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Herman has a problem. Its no longer he said, she said. Now its he said, they said. He can continue to cry lynching, but he really needs to get his story straight. Is it the democrats, or Perry, or someone else who is trying to destroy him. And it doesn't help when you claim you've never met the women, but there are witnesses who say otherwise.

Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Americans believe an amazing range of kooky things. FEMA has death camps, fluoridation corrupts your bodily fluids, the existence of UFOs are more likely than the survival of social security, Sarah Palin is qualified to be president, and so on.

In the old soviet union, rumors like these came about because everyone knew that the state media was just spewing propaganda. Americans believe this crap because the Internet allows any idea, no matter how crazy to get equal footing with just about everything else.

But not every rumor is unfounded. As the saying goes, just because I'm paranoid, doesn't mean they aren't out to get me. Things such as the air at ground zero is perfectly safe and toxic sludge is good for you seriously erode what little faith people have in government institutions.

Now there is this:

The US government skirted over the radiation safety concerns of airport X-ray machines

According to a new report by ProPublica and the PBS NewHour, the US government has gone ahead with the controversial scanners despite serious concerns from radiation safety experts. The scanners are expected to be in place in every American airport security lane by as early as 2014. This is a big reversal from as recently as 1998, when the device's own inventor, Steven W. Smith, told a panel of radiation safety experts, said he didn't think such devices would be used at lower-security facilities - such as airports.

People don't seem to appreciate that every decision has a cost. Want more intrusive security to feel safer when you fly. You might be increasing your chance of cancer. Proponents argue that the increased risk is very small.

UC San Francisco radiologist Rebecca Smith-Bindman found that the radiation emitted by the machines would lead to six cancers in the lifetime of a year's worth of airline passengers, while Columbia's David Brenner placed the figure at as high as a hundred. Those, however, are out of a total of 100 million airline passengers, meaning the odds of developing cancer from a backscatter machine are at worst about one in a million. And, as Smith-Bindman points out, those same 100 million people will develop about 40 million cancers over the course of their lifetimes, with or without the scanners.

On average that is true. But if you are one of the many Americans who has high risk factors or has already had cancer, the average> risk may not be relevant to you. Radiation risk is cumulative. the more you play the game, the stronger the odds you'd hit.

A poll released by Time last week found that 54 percent of Americans say they have a favorable view of the protest movement compared to 23 percent who have an unfavorable view, making OWS far, far more popular than the Tea Party. And while a Reuters/Ipsos survey found a clear partisan divide, with Democrats expressing a positive opinion of the movement by a 51-11 percent margin and Republicans expressing a negative one by a 44-22 spread, it also found that OWS is viewed favorably by a strong plurality of independents. Polling also reveals deep, bipartisan anger toward Wall Street, broad support for prosecuting executives who played major roles in the meltdown, and a widespread belief that the gap between rich and poor is too vast...

... if Obama is counting on receiving a more direct political boost from OWS, he may be in for a disappointment, because there’s reason to believe that OWS is rooted much more in a broad frustration with America’s political and economic systems than in simple partisan politics.

Monday, October 17, 2011

I get tired of the strawman arguments that imply that unless corporations are completely unfettered and allowed to peruse profits then its socialism. The GOP likes to liken corporations to people, but if people acted the way corporations do, they'd be sociopaths.

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Nothing beats that first hot slide of pizza. The second slice is also hard to beat. America is on its second slice of Herman Cain right now. But unfortunately there is no such thing as a two slice pizza. So you'll keep stuffing yourself's full of Herman Cain. Soon your tummy will be a gassy mess, and you'll go to bed and have bad dreams. In the morning you'll wake up and say today you're eating a nice salad.

Saturday, October 15, 2011

CAIN: I don’t have facts to back this up, but I happen to believe that these demonstrations are planned and orchestrated to distract from the failed policies of the Obama administration. Don’t blame Wall Street, don’t blame the big banks, if you don’t have a job and you’re not rich, blame yourself! [...] It is not someone’s fault if they succeeded, it is someone’s fault if they failed.

–PIZZA MAGNATE HERMAN CAIN TALKING OUT OF HIS ASS

What an ass! Lets blame the victim. I know this one is a bit dated, but it just became relevant to me once again. Just days shy of working 20 years, one of our best IT people is being laid off. Not because she isn't needed, not because she didn't work hard, and not because her skills are outdated. But (most likely, because this is virtually impossible to prove) because of her age and the faltering economy. My place of work has been undergoing a great purge the last couple of months. Our work load hasn't changes, but the personal to do it has been significantly reduced.

What Cain, and Republicans like him don't seem to understand that this is the reality for a great many of folks. They've played by the rules and did what they were supposed to, and their life is still falling apart. Economic forces well beyond their, and most of our control, are dictating their future.

This is what the Occupy protests are all about. Not about destroying capitalism. Not about bringing on a socialist, or Marxist, or any other ist state. But leveling the playing field. Reversing the trend toward a second gilded age.

Saying that your unemployment has to be your own fault makes as much sense blaming your parents for not being rich.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Many make the mistake that the protesters on Wall Street are just kids with nothing else to do. If you believed FAUX NEWS, you'd think they are bearded unbathed leftists from the 60's who hate capitalism. The MSM isn't any more flattering in their portrayal. Everyone seems to be determined to discount them from the get go, and negate what ever it is they are trying to say. There seems to be this idea that since they haven't created a list of demands like kidnappers, they aren't serious and can be ignored. Other folks on the right, such as B-Daddy, do seem to get it.

The message is very simple. We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore. A pretty familiar message to Washington. So what are they mad about?

The middle class is hurting. Its been experiencing a downward slide for the last decade and the last few years its dropped off a cliff. They want this acknowledged. They want the kleptocracy in Washington to stop calling them whiners and start taking them seriously. They are tired of feeling like there are two Americas - the ones being screwed and the ones doing the screwing. They're tired of hearing how great things are just because the job hoarders are getting their bonuses and stock options are soaring.

Over all, they are tired of the rich and powerful, being the rich and powerful. They believe in the myth of the American dream, and that hope is being strangled right before their eyes. Many of the protesters don't oppose Capitalism. They just oppose the trend toward a second gilded age. They remember an America where the middle class used to be comfortable, not homeless. And they are tired that no one in Washington seems to be facing this new reality.

Note to the rich and powerful. People in large numbers can become rather dangerous when when hope is taken from them.

Thursday, October 06, 2011

From Salon. The president and his cabinet order the execution of a US citizen without any due process. Where is the outrage over this sort of Star Chamber justice. If this had been Bush doing this, the outcry, rightly so, would have been deafening!

American militants like Anwar al-Awlaki are placed on a kill or capture list by a secretive panel of senior government officials, which then informs the president of its decisions . . . . There is no public record of the operations or decisions of the panel, which is a subset of the White House’s National Security Council . . . . Neither is there any law establishing its existence or setting out the rules by which it is supposed to operate. . . . The role of the president in ordering or ratifying a decision to target a citizen is fuzzy. White House spokesman Tommy Vietor declined to discuss anything about the process. . . .

Representative Dutch Ruppersberger, was asked by reporters about the killing. The process involves “going through the National Security Council, then it eventually goes to the president” . . . .Other officials said the role of the president in the process was murkier than what Ruppersberger described. They said targeting recommendations are drawn up by a committee of mid-level National Security Council and agency officials. Their recommendations are then sent to the panel of NSC “principals,” meaning Cabinet secretaries and intelligence unit chiefs, for approval . . . But one official said Obama would be notified of the principals’ decision. If he objected, the decision would be nullified, the official said.

Just past sunset over Isabelle lake in the Indian Peaks Wilderness of the Front Range of Colorado. Taken yesterday. Just a month ago there were still spring flowers around the lake. Last night everything had turned, and the temperature had dropped. Snow likely this weekend.

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

This was taken in North Central Colorado. Most of the ranchers have rigs on their property. It just happened to be flaming while we drove by. Later, it wasn't burning. Colorado has seen an explosion in oil and natural gas development over the last decade. We've got large fracking projects happening on the Western slope. It came as a rude shock to many ranchers to discover that they don't own the mineral right on their property. Despite the pretty ads on TV, fracking has been surrounded by controversy due to the claims of damaged ground water. This is my favorite. Who says water can burn!

This is one of a number of photos shot while visiting Steamboat Springs just last month. This was taken along the bike path through town along the Yampa river. My earlier attempts to capture one of these this sumer just hasn't worked out. I suspect its partly due to the lighting. This one has great detail.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Booing a currently serving solder in Iraq, classy move on the part of the Republican audience.

Clearly homophobia trumps respect for all who serve.

Rick man on dog is such an asshat. Treating people the same as everyone else isn't special treatment. If the issue is that you don't want to give any group special privileges, why isn't Rick calling for an end of women serving in the military?

And what is it about Rick Santorum and his preoccupation with other peoples sex lives.